Cheating
by lovepadfoot
Summary: Sirius stifled a snicker and thumped his mate on his back. "Oh Prongs. This theory of yours is going to come back and bite you in the arse." Read and Review! DISCLAIMER: I am in no way related to the awesome, fantastic writer that is J.K Rowling, thus I have no claim upon the Harry Potter world!


**A little idea that spring into my head, and turned into a full out Masterpiece! Read and review!  
**

"James, I'm going to be late for work."

"Don't go then."

"James!"

"Lily!"

"Potter!"

"Potter!"

Lily couldn't take it anymore, she burst into a fit of giggles. "Potter, since when do you call me Potter?"

James tightened his hold on the redhead's waist.  
"Since you agreed to marry me."

"We aren't married yet! So I'm still Evans."

"But you said yes to being a Potter, so you are one."

"Enough of this, James! I have to go." Lily squirmed her way out of James's grasp, pulling on her pants and shirt as well.

She got dressed hastily, before practically running out the door.

James Potter sighed, burying his head in his pillow.

For 2 straight weeks Lily had been getting extra shifts at . James didn't find it very strange, after all it was a war. People were dying and getting injured, so he wasn't surprised when Lily said she had been taking extra shifts.

But when he visited her at the hospital, her friend Martha said that Lily always left at 5:00sharp. She told him she was done work at 10:00.

Then he became curious, but again he trusted her completely.

It was when she came home smelling like cologne that he was getting anxious. That day he boldly asked her how late she worked and she said 10:00.

Coming home late from work, lying about it, and smelling like men's cologne. James prayed nothing else would add to the pile. His prayers were ignored.

Every time he mentioned the wedding or anything to do with marriage Lily would brush it off. Every single time.

She came home tired and exhausted and complained that her body was aching. Her body.

So, James lied on his bed, wallowing in his self pity. His fiancée was already bored with him, moving on to men who made her body ache. Men who she stayed out late with, men who she was physically close to. James wanted to kill the bastard that stole her heart from him.

After wallowing all day, he finally called Sirius over and told him his fears had been confirmed.

"Stop being paranoid, Prongs. This is Lily we're talking about! She's the one that threatened you by saying she'll cut off your testicles and feed them to the crows if you cheat on her. Why would she cheat on you? She's too moral for that." Sirius said taking a sip of his firewhiskey.

James shrugged. "Maybe she's bored of me."

"How long has it been since you've had sex?" Sirius asked without hesitation.

"A week." James said with a groan.

Sirius raised an eyebrow "That's not bad, how frequently did you used to have sex?"

James rested his head on his cool kitchen counter top. "Every night." he muttered.

Sirius's other eyebrow met the other one. He let out a low whistle. "Blimey Prongs, good for you. Lily must be some good shag if you keep— OW! Why'd you thump me?" Sirius said rubbing his head where James painfully his him.

James glared at his best mate. "Forgive me if I'm a little sensitive to men commenting on my fiancée's shagging ability." He replied coldly.

Sirius stifled a snicker. The man thumped his mate on his back. "Oh Prongs. This theory of yours is going to come back and bite you in the arse."

James appeared not to have heard him, he leapt off his chair and grabbed his coat.

"Where are you off to now?" Sirius grumbled.

James watched the clock as he put on his coat. "It's almost 5:00. I'm going to go find that bastard and kill him."

Sirius Black knew he should have stopped James, later he'll say it was the firewhiskey that dulled his sense of duty for his mate. But in truth, Sirius was a little curious as well.

So they both headed out and to the direction of .

"Do you see her?"

"No, I don't. But I do see a very attractive blond—Ow! What is it with you and hitting me today?"

"Focus, Padfoot! This is a crisis situation." James said anxiously.

Sirius appeared not to have heard him. "Look! Over there!" He said pointing to the redhead vacating the premises.

James stood up and wordlessly, yet casually followed her.

The two men had purposefully transfigured their appearances keeping in mind that if Lily saw them from a distance, then they wouldn't easily be recognized.

"Where do you think she's headed?" Sirius asked, gazing at the unfamiliar neighborhood.

"Probably to some guy with perfect hair and perfect body and a perfect personality." James muttered as they walked briskly after her.

They passed elaborate buildings, and seemed to be following the red-head to the nicer part of town. She walked into a very fancy building.

"Blimey." Sirius muttered, as the two men discreetly slipped inside the lavish building. "This bloke must be loaded."

James thumped him on the back his head.

"Bloody—"

"You're the one that was against the idea of her being with another bloke." James said furiously.

Sirius glared at him. "I can see why Lily would want to cheat. You're too aggressive."

James was just about to strangle his best mate when something caught his eye.

A man—tall, flat blond hair, perfect smile and a well built body— was talking to Lily. And now he was putting his arm around her shoulders and pulling her behind two doors.

Suddenly, James was feeling very depressed. The thought of beating his best mate to a pulp, vanished from his head and all he wanted to do was crawl into bed and stay there forever.

Despite Sirius's calls and beckons, he walked out of the lavish building and towards home.

*****

Of course being who he was, James Potter doesn't just wallow in his self pity in the privacy of his own bed. He goes to the Three Broomsticks and makes a complete fool of himself by drinking himself stupid, instead.

"An ya' know wha' she does? She goes with im'! Right through those big red doors!" James said to Remus as he downed another drink.

"Prongs, I think you've got this all wrong. Have you talked to Lily?" The werewolf asked as he attempted to carefully pull the bottle of firewhiskey from his hammered friends fingertips.

James stiffened his grip and pulled on the bottle closer to him. "No! And I don't need to! I know the truth now!" He said loudly.

"I have seen the light!" He said suddenly, so loud everyone in the bar started to cheer him on.

Despite Remus's protests, James stood on the bar counter.

"I have seen the light!" He repeated.

The people in the bar cheered and whistled.

James raised a hand to silence them. "And let me tell you, the light sucks!" He said raising his firewhiskey bottle in the air then taking a huge swig from it.

The bar cheered louder.

This seemed to excite James because he decided it would be cool to throw himself at the crowd and he did just that.

Unfortunately, the crowd of hammered men and women didn't share his sentiments and moved away from his flying figure, causing James to land flat on his face.

Remus swore loudly as he helped his friend up, Sirius on the other hand laughed loudly, clearly just as drunk as James.

"Oh dear Merlin." Sirius said wiping a tear of mirth from his eye.

Remus glared at him as he levitated an unconscious James out of the bar.

"You two are going to get us kicked out of that place with your shenanigans." Remus scolded angrily as James floated above the pair.

Sirius snorted. "Rosmerta's smitten with me! She'd never kick us out." He said certainly.

Remus stared at the floating figure of his best mate. "And this cheating fiasco... What do you have to say about that?"

Sirius also glanced at the inconscious James. "I would be lying if I said there wasn't anything fishy going on." He said, his grey eyes strangely focused considering how much he'd drunk.

Remus snorted. "There could be a hundred different explanations for Lily's strange behavior!"

Sirius switched his gaze to the werewolf. "I'm not saying she's cheating. I'm saying that she's not being entirely honest with him."

Remus raised an eyebrow at Sirius.

"Ok, ok, ok. I might be leaning slightly to Prongs's theory..." He said with a twitch of his lips.

Remus glared at him. "It's Lily we're talking about."

Sirius too a swig from his bottle of firewhiskey and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. "We all know Lily's a great bird! But you're forgetting something... She's a bird! And birds can't be trusted." He said dramatically.

"Here we go." Remus muttered under his breath.

"Just when you think you've got them figured out...Bam! You're wrong. The men are always wrong. And if you Say otherwise...Bam! You're a goner. And if you're a goner then...Bam!" Sirius said taking another swig from his bottle.

Remus looked at him quizzically. "What was that Bam for?"

Sirius shrugged. "I don't know...you get eaten by a hippogriff." He offered.

Remus shook his head. "You're barmy."

"No...women are barmy." Sirius corrected. "You can never trust em' and if you do..Bam!" He boomed making Remus jump a little.

"Give me that." Remus said frustratedly, grabbing the bottle from Sirius and chucking it somewhere in the bushes.

"Hey! That was 1920's Champain de Rouge!" The drunk man scolded.

"You can do without any Rouge. Look at the state of you!" Remus said gesturing to Sirius's alcohol smelling clothes.

Sirius looked down at his clothes then up at Remus, glaring. But saying nothing.

"What was that last Bam for?" Remus asked changing the subject.

"If you trust women...Bam! You end up like Prongs." Sirius said gesturing to the unconscious James.

"Of course you do. Because women are the root of all evil." Remus muttered under his breath.

"Because women are the root of all evil!" Sirius said loudly.

"And they trick you and manipulate you until you wind up in their grasp and when you do.." Remus mouthed the words as Sirius said them loudly.

"You die!" Sirius said dramatically.

Remus fought hard to keep from rolling his eyes at his over-dramatic friend. "Maybe you are more drunk than you look."

Sirius's eyebrows furrowed. "I'm not."

"Sure, sure Padfoot. Now let's get you two home so Lily can kick both your arses sky high." Remus replied picking up the pace and ignoring Sirius's proclamations of "Lily's a bird! Birds can't be trusted! You act like a non-believer, but mark my words. You'll find a bird who acts nothing like one. You'll find a bird that I'll approve of. You'll find a bird who is 100% Black. She'll be my kind of woman."

"I can't wait." The werewolf muttered dryly.

*******

Lily Evans prided herself on her cooking. She could cook great meals fit for a king. However, now a days, she barely had enough time to put together a sandwich—let alone a proper meal.

But today, Lily had enough. She put on her "I Make Magic" apron—despite her aching arms— and then planned on making a mushroom ravioli for dinner for her fiancé.

However, Lily Evans had more than one reason for her sudden urge to cook. The red head would never admit it, but she felt inexplicably guilty. She was lying to James. To her James. Lying about where she went for five hours almost everyday.

Just thinking about it made Lily's stomach squirm. It wasn't her fault, it just happened. Mario was kind and patient and was a great dancer. He was perfect for her.

The redhead sighed as she popped the ravioli into the oven. Who was she kidding? She had to tell James the truth soon. He was a smart man he would get suspicious.

Lily walked out of the kitchen, stumbling in the 3 inch heels she wore. She practically fell onto the couch.

"Merlin, help me." She said taking off the heels and glaring at them. Lily Evans was a klutz. She tripped over flat surfaces and in heels was just a disaster. But Mario wanted her to wear them, so she did.

She sat up, slipped out of the heels and tucked her legs underneath her on the couch, glaring at the death contraptions that were known as high heels.

********

After hitting both Sirius and I with a sobering charm, Remus side-along apparated us to the flat Lily and I shared.

"Goodbye Prongs, Padfoot." Remus said with a nod.

James frowned, his head pounding. "Sure you don't want to come in Moony?"

Remus shook his head. "Some other time, Prongs. That is if Lily doesn't kill you two." Remus said hiding a smile.

Sirius and I sent him a dirty look before he apparated home.

James sighed before pulling the key out of his pocket and unlocking the door. No doubt Lily was off with her mystery bloke, so he was sure he had enough time to get cleaned up.

What he wasn't expecting was for her to be lying on the couch fast asleep. He stood in the doorway, in awe.

"What are you—oh." Sirius said catching his gaze.

James's eyes travelled along her body. She looked different. Her body was toned, like she had recently worked out. But her face looked exhausted.

His eyes softened, as he entered the flat. He grabbed the old afghan off the couch and draped it over her tiny frame.

Sirius didn't say anything, although he could practically feel his brain whirring with ideas.

"Smell that?" Sirius asked softly, breaking the silence.

James's head popped up, and he too took in the smell of cheese and garlic.

Sirius walked towards the kitchen and popped open the oven. "Mmm. Lily's homemade ravioli." He said appreciatively.

James didn't say anything, merely sunk down onto the couch next to Lily, carefully so he wouldn't jostle her.

He swept his hand over his face tiredly. "I can't do this, Padfoot."

Sirius turned off the oven with a click of a button and then propped himself on another couch.

"We aren't a hundred percent sure, Prongs. Relax." He said calmly.

"I love her."

Sirius examined his best mate_. If Lily was cheating, it would kill him._ Sirius thought sourly.

"I know you do." Padfoot said warily.

Just then, Lily stirred. James sat up and offered a small smile as she stretched and sat up. "Oh, hullo James, Sirius." She said suppressing a yawn as she shook herself awake.

"Evans." Sirius said coolly. James threw him a dirty look. Luckily, Lily didn't notice anything.

"How long were you two here? You should have woken me up! Oh Merlin, the ravioli!" Lily said hurrying to get up.

"The ravioli is fine." James said calmy grabbing Lily's wrist. "Sirius turned off the oven. Relax, love. " He pulled his fiancée next to him on the couch.

She sighed, but did just as he asked, and snuggled into his chest.

Sirius started to have doubts about Lily's infidelity. _She really did love him._ He analyzed. _Either that or she's just a disturbing bird, sleeping with two different men._

Just as he thought that, Lily stiffened and pulled out of the embrace.

"What is it?" James asked.

The redhead's eyes narrowed. "You've been drinking, haven't you?"

James smiled innocently, confirming Lily's suspicions.

She frowned and then gazed from Sirius to James. "Ok, something's wrong. Usually you can't wait to tell me all about your little drunk escapades or excursions or all the mischief." She said slowly, gauging our expressions. "But you seem grim. What happened?" She asked, looking to Sirius when James didn't speak.

"I should get going, Lils." Sirius said standing up.

Lily looked bemused. "I made dinner. Ravioli to be exact. You love my mushroom ravioli."

Sirius smiled respectably. "Another time." Before he could leave, Lily called him back.

"Sirius, you're scaring me." Lily said looking at the two of warily.

James sighed. "We know that you don't work after 5:00, Lils." He said quietly. "We saw you in muggle downtown in that lavish building."

Lily looked surprised. "You know?"

"Yes, we saw you with him." Sirius said speaking up.

Lily sighed defeatedly. "I didn't want you to find out like this, James."

James merely pushed her away and stood up. "How long?"

"Hmm?"

"How long were you doing this?" James asked looking slightly angry.

"A couple days after you proposed." Lily said quietly.

James looked pained. "You've been keeping his from me for that long?"

The redhead looked ashamed. "I'm sorry, James. I didn't want to lie. But I couldn't tell you either. It was supposed to be a—"

"Nothing you say will make this better." James said irritably.

Lily walked towards him. "Listen, James, I'm so so—"

"How did you two meet?" James asked abruptly.

Lily looked confused but answered anyways. "Marlene gave me his number. She told me Mario was a very patient man and could—"

"Why'd you do it?"

Lily looked even more confused, which made Sirius uneasy.  
"What do you mean why did I do it? It was the only thing I could think of that wouldn't make me look like such an idiot!" She said, frustrated.  
_  
Oh shit. _Sirius thought.

James blinked. "An idiot? But how? What? What are you talking about?"

"What am I talking about? I'm talking about the dance lessons. What are YOU talking about?" Lily asked angrily.

"But you always brushed off anything to do with the wedding!" James exclaimed.

Lily looked perplexed. "I was scared that if we talked about the wedding then I would accidentally tell you about the lessons. It was supposed to be a surprise!"

"But I saw you with that man!"

"He's my dance instructor."

James blinked looking thoughtful. Everything made sense to him at the same time as it made sense to Sirius.

"The late hours, the lying, the body aching, the lavish building, the perfect man, it was dance lessons!" James muttered sounding dazed and very relieved.

Lily looked very confused. "Of course it was dance lessons. I'm not the most graceful person on the planet, and I didn't want to make a total fool of myself in front of everyone that you knew on our wedding day. So after you proposed I asked Marlene for Mario's number and then signed myself up." She explained.

James grinned. "I love you, I love you so much." He said before kissing her passionately.

She responded just as enthusiastically, and Sirius politely turned away.

"I'm just gonna—"

"Wait a second." Lily said pulling away from James.

She stared at both the men. "If you two didn't know about the dancing, what did you think I was doing?" She asked her voice growing quieter as she spoke.

She looked thoughtful as she gazed at both of them. "You came home drunk." She commented. "You looked very upset and you questioned me about Mario." Again, she looked dazed until finally everything clicked.

Her eyes widened and she gasped. "You thought I was cheating on you?"

James looked nervous. "Listen, Lily, I—"

She glared at the two of them. "You thought I would cheat? Me? Lily Evans?"

"Lily—"

"Shut up!" She shouted. She headed towards the kitchen. "You are a complete, imbecile! How could you ever think that low of me?" She shouted, exasperatedly.

"I know, Lils. I was being an idiot." James said running a hand through his hair.

She shook her head repeatedly, her voice coming out softer, but defeated. "Don't you trust me, James?" She asked her eyes bright with unshed tears.

James looked horrified. "No Lils, Don't cry." James walked towards her and wrapped his arms around her frame.

"I trust you completely. After all these years, I guess I'm just afraid that you'll come to your senses and realize what a prat I am, and then leave. I guess I'm still trying to figure out why you'd wanna marry me when someone as beautiful and fun as you deserves so much bet—"

Lily put a finger to his lips, stopping him from saying anything. Her expression was soft and warm.

"Oh James, you really are a complete imbecile." She said with a chuckle. She put a hand on his cheek. "I love you because you are fun, sweet, funny and you add some sparkle in my life. Every time I'm with you, I feel like I'm at home. You are my home, James. And if you think for one second that you aren't the perfect guy, then you are totally right." She said with a hint of a smile as James looked at her bemused.

"But you're the perfect guy for me." She said reaching up to kiss him on the cheek.

James turned his face a little to the left, catching her lips with his in a sweet yet passionate kiss.

Lily pulled away and smiled. "Now that we have established that you are an imbecile but I still love you for it. How about some dinner?" She asked brightly.

"Sounds great, although... I think you scared Sirius off." He commented lightly.

The couple looked towards the couches and then the door, not finding Sirius anywhere.

"The mangy mutt." James muttered with a chuckle.

Lily looked up at him. "Is that why you got drunk, because you thought I was cheating on you?"

James smiled sheepishly. "Yeah, I didn't handle it very well."

Lily merely glared at him. "No, you didn't. Something tells me that Remus knows too. He probably dragged your drunk arses here himself." She said knowingly.

James merely shrugged, still grinning. His fiancée wasn't cheating, she was just taking dance lessons. For the wedding. For him.

He absentmindedly looked towards the front door again and then noticed something peculiar.

"Uh, Potter?"

Lily giggled at the name. "Yes, Potter?"

"Why is there a hole in the wall shaped like a pair of girl shoes?"

**Fin.**

Sorry about the ending guys. I know it may sound a little crappy, but it just fit. Thank you for reading. I worked pretty hard on this piece.. And I hope you guys can leave a review and give some feedback on how I can improve or just compliment it. Because I love compliments!

Reading without reviewing is like popcorn without butter. It breaks my heart :(

Leave a review! 


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